Cardinal Walter Kasper, prefect emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity

Mar. 4, 2014

Cardinal Kasper’s Speech on Divorce, Remarriage and Communion

While the German cardinal affirmed Church teachings in other areas, he controversially suggested reception of Communion for divorced-remarried Catholics might be permissible.

ANDREA GAGLIARDUCCI/CNA

VATICAN CITY — In a two-hour address to a consistory on the family last month, Cardinal Walter Kasper discussed marriage and family life, devoting the last section to “the problem of the divorced and remarried.”

The final of the five sections has garnered much attention in the press. In that portion, he commented, “Is it not perhaps an exploitation of the person,” when a person who has been divorced and remarried is excluded from receiving Communion? And he suggests that for “the smaller segment of the divorced and remarried,” perhaps they could be admitted to “the sacrament of penance and then of Communion.”

The president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity spoke at the extraordinary consistory on the family Feb. 20, addressing Pope Francis and some 150 cardinals.

The Holy See press officer, Father Federico Lombardi, had said the address would not be released, as it was a “starting point” of discussion on marriage and the family and not a final word.

But the full text of Cardinal Kasper’s talk was published by Italian daily Il Foglio March 1, under the title of “The Bible, Eros and Family: Creation excludes absolutely the theories of gender. Man and woman are joined together and are invited to become a family unit, to social virtue, to the search for felicity.”

The address discussed the theology of marriage and was intended to serve as the basis of a discussion on marriage and family life.

The speech was divided into sections on the family in the order of creation; the structures of sin in the life of the family; the family in the Christian order of redemption; the family as a domestic church; and the problem of the divorced and remarried.

Cardinal Kasper began by stressing that “individualism and consumerism” put the “traditional culture of the family” in jeopardy, and, therefore, the number of those who “fail in realizing their project of life has dramatically increased.”

Despite this, he said, “our position today cannot be that of a liberal adaptation to the status quo, but a radical position that traces back to our origins, that is, to the Gospel.”

The Order of Creation

In the order of creation, he noted that marriage and the family have “been widely appreciated by all cultures in the history of humanity. It is defended as a community of life between a man and a woman, together with their children.”

Cardinal Kasper denied, without referring directly to them, secular ideologies on gender and sexuality, explaining that “becoming a man or a woman is not a matter of one’s personal choice, as recent opinions maintain.”

As an image of God, human love is beautiful, yet is not divine, he said. Thus there is a problem when a person “deifies” their spouse, setting expectations so high that they cannot be met; this, he said, is a reason why “many marriages fail.”

Touching on the ordering of marriage to children, Cardinal Kasper said the family has “a social and political task” and is in fact the “fundamental model” for the state, since the family precedes it, both in time and in precedence.

Speaking on structural sin and family life, he said we cannot have “an unrealistic and romantic idea,” but we, rather, have to “see the tough realities and take part in the sadness, worries and tears of many families.”

At the same time, we should be “bearers of hope” more than “prophets of misfortune,” offering consolation and encouraging families to persevere through their struggles.

Cardinal Kasper then turned to the family in the Christian order of redemption, drawing upon Christ’s words calling the scribes and Pharisees to consider not the Mosaic Law, which made concessions to “the hardness of your hearts,” but to God’s original plan for creation.

Marriage is an image of, and is “embraced and sustained by,” the bond between God and his people, in which “the fidelity to God remains, even when the fragile human bond of love is weakened or even dies.”

“The definitive promise of a bond of fidelity of God deprives the human bond of arbitrariness, and it gives him solidity and stability.” This is the basis for the indissolubility of marriage, he said.

As a sacrament, Cardinal Kasper said, marriage “is both a healer for the consequences of sin and a tool for sanctifying grace.” In the face of hardness of hearts, families must continue on the path of “conversion, renewal and maturation.”

He then turned to the family as a domestic church, saying, “Families need the Church, and the Church needs families to be present at the center of life. … Without the domestic churches, the Church is a stranger to the concrete realm of life.”

‘Paradigm Change’

It was only after having discussed all this that Cardinal Kasper turned to the section of his address that has generated controversy: “the problem of the divorced and remarried.”

Noting the large number of persons suffering from the effects of divorce, he said, “It is not enough to consider the problem only from the point of view and from the perspective of the Church as a sacramental institution. We need a paradigm change, and we must — as the Good Samaritan did — consider the situation also from the perspective of those who are suffering and asking for help.”

The issue, Cardinal Kasper said, “cannot be reduced to the question of admission to Communion,” but regards “the overall pastoral interest in marriages and families.”

Pastors’ care and concern cannot “stop after the failure of a marriage,” and they “must remain close to the divorced and invite them to take part in the life of the Church.”

Facing those who have divorced and entered a second, civil marriage while their spouse is still alive, Cardinal Kasper said that the Church “cannot propose a solution that is different from or contrary to the words of Jesus. The indissolubility of sacramental marriage and the impossibility of a new marriage during the lifetime of the other partner is part of the tradition of the Church’s binding faith that cannot be abandoned or undone by appealing to a superficial understanding of cheapened mercy.”

He suggested that the current situation is analogous to that of the Second Vatican Council on issues of ecumenism and religious freedom: Without violating the binding dogmatic tradition, the Council opened doors. We can ask ourselves: Is it not perhaps possible that there could be further developments on the present question as well?

No General Solution

The answer, he said, can only be tailored to the multiplicity of situations, which “should be distinguished with care. A general solution for all cases cannot, therefore, exist.”

Cardinal Kasper suggested that “we cannot presuppose that that spouses” understand the conditions which make for a valid marriage and asked if the presumption of validity “is not often a legal fiction.”

In light of this, he suggested that instead of questions of nullity being decided by a tribunal, “we sometimes ask ourselves … if other more pastoral and spiritual procedures could also be possible.”

“As an alternative, one might think that the bishop could entrust this task to a priest.”

He added, however, that it would be wrong to try and solve the problem with “a generous enlargement of the procedure of nullity,” since it would create the “dangerous impression that the Church would dishonestly concede what in fact is a divorce.”

Noting that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 1994 wrote that those who are divorced and remarried can make an act of spiritual communion, he asked, “Why, then, can [such a person] not also receive sacramental Communion?”

He claimed that, in the early Church, when someone entered a new relationship even though their spouse was still alive, “after a period of penance, had available … a life raft through admission to Communion.”

Suggesting a “way of conversion” involving the sacrament of confession, he asked, “Is it also the path that we could follow in the present question?”

When someone who is divorced and remarried “repents of his failure in the first marriage”; if he cannot return to the first marriage; if he “cannot abandon without further harm” the responsibilities of his second marriage; if “he is doing the best he can to live out the possibilities of the second marriage on the basis of the faith and to raise his children in the faith”; and if “he has a desire for the sacraments as a source of strength in his situation,” Cardinal Kasper said, then “should we or can we deny him, after a period of time of a new orientation (metanoia), the sacrament of penance and then of Communion?”

He clarified that this is not “a general solution,” but is “the narrow path of what is probably the smaller segment of the divorced and remarried, those sincerely interested in the sacraments.”

“Life is not just black or white; there are, in fact, many nuances.”

Cardinal Kasper emphasized the need for “discretion, spiritual discernment, sagacity and pastoral wisdom” in these cases. “This discretion is not an easy compromise between the extremes of rigorism and laxity, but, as is every virtue, a perfection between these extremes.”

Testimony of Joy

Concluding his address, he said, “We must take a positive starting point and rediscover and announce the Gospel of the family in all its beauty. Truth convinces through its beauty.”

“We need to help, with words and deeds, to ensure that persons find felicity in the family and thus can give to other families a testimony of their joy.”

From what the above article indicates (and I have also read elsewhere…) that conversation of Cardinal Kasper with a Reporter should never have happened. The topic was under discussion in Rome—in a “private” gathering of the Cardinals—who, every now and then, assemble together to discuss serious matters related to faith and morals—Unfortunately, he “leaked” information which, to be blunt, he had no business doing—and look at the consequences! Every body and their brother is concluding that the Catholic Church is “changing” the teaching of Christ on marriage!

Posted by CMA on Thursday, Mar, 27, 2014 10:21 AM (EST):

@Denise - I can empathize there…I spent about 4 years sobbing at the Eucharist when I attended Mass. My husband, who had a very bad taste in his mouth from the priest with whom he had had to deal prior to his first marriage (and from prejudice he’d learned at home), refused to get an annulment. It was those tears that he saw, when he joined me at Christmas Midnight Mass for several years,that finally softened his heart.

I can’t tell you how I feel when I see people, sit, week in and week out, while everyone else gets up to receive. One day the HS prompted me to touch a man on the shoulder, a Hispanic man, and out of my mouth with no thought was, “Jesus is waiting for you, He wants you”. I had tears and this man looked sadly at me and said, “I want to go too.” I said, then go. And this from a recent revert who spent most of my time trying to be more Catholic than the Pope. Quoting Canon law and all the rules…etc. It was not me who decided do this and say this, it happened as I cried on the way to receive asking ‘why?‘and it came pouring out of my mouth on the way back to the pew.

But to you I ask or say, if you are that desirous of the Eucharist, the HOly Spirit is talking to you. Why not consider the annulment process? It isn’t so bad. Go to your pastor and if he is not helpful, find a pastor who is. Some pastors hate to do the paperwork and they know they are not articulate enough to make a case. You will find the right person, we did.
Bring it to Our Lady…it was she who kept my marriage together throughout my conversion/reversion. She will do it for you too. Jesus waits for you on the altar. Do not let anyone here or in your parish tell you different.

OH and by the way, one of my children is now Catholic, but my whole family is a household of faith. My husband came to respect and even love much about faith (not enough yet to convert but we are always praying. As ‘orthodox’ Christians, we have much more in common than what separates and so even with our kids out of the house, faith is something we share together at the table and even at worship as we join each other at our churches. When we seek God, God makes a path for us.

Posted by St Donatus on Thursday, Mar, 27, 2014 8:56 AM (EST):

I can very well see the pain that someone feels when they have divorced in haste then remarried and after children and building a new life, want to come back to the Church. How truly do you change all that history. I understand the problem. How does the Church reach out to such people when they have destroyed their first marriage? Yes, rarely but sometimes one spouse is deserted by the other and the other commits adultery. Perhaps the Church can work with this, I don’t know. But the fact is, that Jesus discontinued the allowance for divorce. Yes, in one place he gives the possibility of divorce for fornication but he never said anything about remarriage. In fact, the context indicates that no remarriage was possible since he said that anyone who marries a divorced woman was committing adultery.

St Paul seems to say that a Christian can divorce a non-Christian but shouldn’t. But he doesn’t mention anything about remarriage.

Again, millions of single Catholics, both religious and laity do just fine and are very happy. I know several kind men whose wives abandoned and divorced them for more exciting men. These men remain happily single. They have transferred that love that they would give a wife to God.

Posted by denise cole on Wednesday, Mar, 26, 2014 5:11 PM (EST):

If the bishops refuse to allow us who have divorced and remarried to receive the sacraments, it will show a great hardness of their hearts. They say that a great majority of divorced and remarried catholics do not attend church and I can tell you why. It is because if you have a great love for the church, it is very difficult to experience the mass and not be allowed to receive communion. I have tried over the past 16 years to attend mass and have to leave because my emotions get the best of me and I cannot contain my tears of sadness. I pray every day that they will change this law so that the truly faithful will be able to return fully to the church. I know that there are many who are just like me…

Posted by CMA on Saturday, Mar, 8, 2014 2:04 PM (EST):

There are always people who think they can cheat the system, get around things. Those are not the people Cardinal Kasper or myself would hold up repentent. Why hold up only the insincere?
The Church recognizes all marriages…and maybe that was our fault. There was a time when civil marriages were not recognized, now they are, though the process is simplified…and why? Because it is not a sacrament. Then why do we recognize it? We cannot have it both ways. Marriages in Protestant churches are recognized as valid, and that makes more sense to me. The Episcopal Church, in which I got married 35 years ago when I was not a practicing Catholic, required permission of the bishop to marry. We could not get married in my parents’ church, my husband had been married to a Catholic (non-practicing, but grandma won’t come etc.) All we both wanted at the time, as we took the covenant very seriously, was to be married in a church before God. BTW…16 odd years later, my husband agreed to go through an annulment so that I could return to the Church. It was not the wonderful experience for either of us that people describe, but my husband very much liked his mentor throughout and really got to understand some of his ‘friends’.

Posted by Mariann on Friday, Mar, 7, 2014 6:22 PM (EST):

CMA, It is interesting that you brought up the “many marry in a Christian Church” because I have known many a Catholic who tried to get around Church Teaching and they married in a protestant church as what they thought would be ok in the Catholic Church. They were amazed to find that the Church would not recognize their second marriage because the protestant church did. Many who try to bend the Truth to match their wants walk away, many ignore it, and many complain. Church teaching is no remarriage unless the first marriage was not valid. They may not recognize what they did, but they certainly need to repair and should be told the beauty of Truth and what options they have before them. I heard a magnificent talk today about marriage where they said until about 40 years ago there were only 3 reasons to divorce (no fault divorce was not an option). They were abuse, abandonment, and adultry. The major problem therefore is that divorce civilly was rare but now divorce civilly is at the drop of a hat and people want the Church to bend Truth for the problems created by the government.

Posted by CMA on Friday, Mar, 7, 2014 10:37 AM (EST):

Like JPII said of social justice, it finds its truth and must be based upon the belief that every life has dignity; it begins at conception and ends at natural death. Well, you might say the same of the Church’s mission, it all begins and ends with bringing people to Christ, to save souls. Even Jesus left marriage dissolution open…for cases of adultery, or so we translate it. Jesus was not a Pharisee in the worst sense of the word.

Posted by CMA on Friday, Mar, 7, 2014 10:33 AM (EST):

@ V S Let’s not forget,one who is divorced but does NOT remarry, is welcome at the Table of the Lord. Period. The key is to find an honest alternative path so that the person left, does not have the added hurt of knowing they must spend their life alone (imagine a priest being laicized for no fault of their own) or spend it outside the Church.

Posted by V S on Thursday, Mar, 6, 2014 6:44 PM (EST):

@ St Donatus - yes, there are married priests in the Roman Rite…from other denominations who converted to Catholicism. And we are all the more blessed with their services.
Regarding the excommunications of priests and bishops which did occur for the reasons of not departing from their wives. Check out the bishops who were excommunicated from supporting the priests who wanted to stay married. The abuses of excommunication that went on during this time were just one of the many reasons that lead up to the Reformation. It is a part of history that is not much talked about as it is not a sunny side to look at.
The pains of divorce need to be reconsidered from the standpoint that there are many Catholics who are divorced and were faithful in their marriages and for reasons beyond their control are now faced with not receiving Holy Communion. With no-fault divorces, in which our society make it far too easy to divorce, many should not be ‘punished’ by not being allowed to receive. How many have stayed faithful to the Church and their spouse left not only the Church but their spouses. Should those who were faithful still be denied? Some sins are beyond our control.

Posted by Theresa H on Thursday, Mar, 6, 2014 3:53 PM (EST):

The single life can also be a vocation—for the Sake of the Kingdom.

Posted by CMA on Thursday, Mar, 6, 2014 3:43 PM (EST):

Marianne,

The person who divorces and remarries does not believe they are sinning; at least not at the time. Many marry in a Christian church, therefore it is before God and in good faith. They do not see themselves as ‘fornicating’. I would sooner see it. You remarried, you have a conversion, you now BELIEVE it wrong to do without the Church, so confess it, take marriage classes or do some sort of penance perhaps even prayer and celibacy for a period of time, then we say, we welcome you, go sin no more.

Posted by Theresa H on Thursday, Mar, 6, 2014 3:32 PM (EST):

As I understand, the “bottom-line” question is always and everywhere: “Was the first ‘marriage’ valid” on the part of both parties? If the first marriage is determined to be valid by the Tribunal—then it is: “...til death do us part” and the Word of the Lord stands: “What God has joined together, let no man put asunder.” If the married partners cannot live together for some reason…, then they may have to separate, but neither can re-marry if the first marriage was valid. Of course, civilly, one or both may re-marry, but civil re-marriage by one or both parties won’t be recognized by the Church if the first marriage was valid. Marriage Tribunals have to work through all the actual circumstances to come to the final conclusion re. any given case.

Posted by Mariann on Thursday, Mar, 6, 2014 9:00 AM (EST):

@JAC, If you do not think your marriage was valid, have you looked into an annulment? I think many have a misunderstanding of annulments because they haven’t sought one. They are an examination of one’s life. They are quite healing. They begin with background about yourself, then about your “spouse” and from there, a continued examination of the relationship from first meeting up until current. Then there is normally a waiting period as the Tribunal gathers witness’ testimonies…which provides an excellent stretch of time to grow in one’s knowing and loving and serving God. If granted that the marriage was invalid to begin with, the persons are then free to pursue a relationship. If not, the celibate life is placing God’s love above all else. Seek first the Kingdom of God…then you will know His Peace that surpasses all understanding.

...and for those who are confused as to why can other sinners confess and receive the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ…our Lord tells us to go and sin no more. So, how can one confess that they are divorced and remarried and fornicating, and want to receive our Lord…When we confess, our hearts must be contrite. It would seem that the divorced and remarried could not be contrite if there intent was to continue in the remarriage and fornication.

Posted by Phyllis Poole on Wednesday, Mar, 5, 2014 10:33 AM (EST):

There is such a thing as sin. Adultery is one of them. When a couple get married, if they cannot be an annulment, then that marriage was a valid one. Any further marriage would be an adulterous one.
From experience -I have an annulment, have not looked at the marriage as a true one but just in case, I did not look for another mate.
This is where the church should change in their shepherding. I have read where it takes at least 6 mos. of counseling now for a marriage to take place. That’s a good start. Another good thing would be to not allow mixed marriages. When they threw that overboard, I am sure there were many more divorces. Another good start would be to require all parishes to restart the CYO- catholic youth group. Where better would catholic young people find another catholic?
There are lots of things to be done to help the situation of unhappy divorced people but it doesn’t start with giving an adulterous person absolution (how do you do that for a sinner not being sorry for their sin?) and the right to take our Lord in communion!
I would say to the divorced person - you shouldn’t have started dating again! That’s our “cross” and we’d better accept it or be sorry after the death of our body!

Posted by J.A.C. on Wednesday, Mar, 5, 2014 10:12 AM (EST):

GOD BLESS CARDINAL KASPER!!!

Posted by St Donatus on Wednesday, Mar, 5, 2014 9:25 AM (EST):

VS, is this something you ‘learned’ from your liberal college professors who hated the Church or just wanted to sell his new book with it’s new ‘revelations’ on Church history. You do realize that the church has married priests today as well, don’t you. You do realize that celibacy was not just ‘forced’ upon the priest but occurred organically, starting with the religious orders vows, then instituted by the Church many years later. You do realize that, just as now, priests were allowed to stay married after it was implemented but newly ordained priests were not allowed to marry.

Oh well, again a story that those who want to find an excuse not to follow or believe in Church teaching push. I heard it all before, but under study, all of these ideas fall on their face and the Truth of our Mother Church is once again revealed.

Posted by J.A.C. on Wednesday, Mar, 5, 2014 2:14 AM (EST):

so Pulosi,Kerry and all the other so called Catholics who support the murder of innocent children is ok to receive Holy Communion but those of us who are divorced and remarried cannot…where is the logic in that??...and all you idiots who are still in your marriages need to stop showing off and condemning those of us who tried not to divorce but unfortunately have divorced…I divorced when I was quite young and didn’t really understand what marriage was all about…I didn’t want the divorce but he did…I could not fight it…that marriage only lasted 8 months and that was back in 1996…I was finally remarried in 2012 and this marriage has lasted well over a year and we are both happy….I don’t care that I was not remarried in the church…to me God was there and witnessed it…first husband was an A$$ anyway as all he cared about was spending time with his friends which I found out later was a joke as he was fooling around behind my back….not much later after the divorce he was getting married again…it was never my intention to marry again as I started distrusting men but now I have a wonderful man and we are both happy…and if you morons still want to condemn me for this then go ahead…but remember that it is written that those who condemn are already condemned in Gods eyes….I am sick and tired of all you claiming to be so holy and good yet you use contraception and support some type of abortion…..why don’t you look in the mirror and see what things you can do to change your life before you go around condemning the lives of others…

Posted by V S on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 7:17 PM (EST):

In the earlier years of the Church, we did have married priests, bishops and popes (Peter as the 1st Pope). Many of these marriages were “dissolved” by the Church when it decided to enforce celibacy. So much for what God had joined together . . . . What happened to many of the families of the priests? How many of their wives became widows and their children orphaned? How many priests were forced to abandon their families in order to continue their vocations and serve the Church or face excommunication? It is almost amusing to know how rich our Church history is and during this very dark time ( approximately sometime before the year 1023 AD) that this was happening how much is shaded gray. Yes, we do have skeletons in the closet. Where are all those saints who were married in the priesthood in the Church history books? How about the bishops who tried to defend these precious families who were threatened with excommunication and some were.
The tools the Church uses can be for the betterment or the destruction of the family. It is a wise sage who can “see” the appropriate solutions with divorce. Oftentimes there are also children who are most harmed.
Maybe if it could be allowed, the practice of marital counseling with a priest should be given much better attention before divorce. But this would require much more time that frankly, our priests of today have very little of.
What does Jesus really mean when He spoke of divorce? Are there acceptable reasons that permit a divorce? Abuse comes to mind. We need to listen and hear what Jesus truly meant regarding this delicate subject. He gave a measure to live up to that required both parties to attain to with His help. And we must remember that Satan hates marital bliss and will do anything to break up a marriage. He seems to be winning over many who have bought his lies….

Posted by A D RYAN on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 5:46 PM (EST):

wwW. wHO IS cARDINAL KASPAR?

Posted by DJ Hesselius on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 5:39 PM (EST):

Realistically, if the priest admits one divorced/remarried couple to communion, he will have to admit them all.
.
Back in the 30s the contraception was given by the nod by the Anglican bishops at their Lambeth Conference, they said very clearly that couple could not simply resort to contraception for any reason, but had to do so within Christian principles, etc. That lasted, oh, 5 minutes? Sales of contraceptives, when they were finally decriminalized, where still restricted for awhile, then anyone over 18 could purchase them. Now, pretty much anyone can buy them. Even hormonal contraceptives (aka Plan B) are allowed for sale to minors in some areas.

Posted by Stephanie on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 5:10 PM (EST):

It is not a sin to be divorced. Sometimes divorce is needed, but it should only be done for a grave reason (e.g. abuse).

Remarriage after divorce (before one’s spouse dies), on the other hand, is never acceptable. I don’t know why divorced Catholics even consider dating while their spouse is still alive. It is leading others into sin by pretending to be single. There are many reasons why a marriage could be declared null and it is something to look into for divorced Catholics who have reason to believe their marriage is invalid.

Yes, it is lonely at times, but everyone has a different cross to carry. A lot of people are called to a life of celibacy for various reasons. Learn to control your passions. Unite your sufferings to the cross. Focus on your children and your community rather than on your own feelings of loneliness. If you start to have feelings for someone, it is best to distance yourself from that person. You are still MARRIED in the eyes of God. If you don’t believe what Jesus said then there is no point in being a Christian, is there?

As for all the single people, not everyone is called to marriage. If someone is cohabiting or has been dating the same person for 3+ years, then it would be good to see if selfishness is a motive for not getting married. But there are a lot of young people who are either unemployed or underemployed and had to move back in with their parents. They are not ready for a serious relationship until they get their own lives sorted. Having no job or making minimum wage, while living with mom and dad, is not a good way to start a marriage. Some young people are not called to marriage. There are religious and lay vocations that do not involve the sacrament of matrimony.

Matthew 19:9
I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) and marries another commits adultery.”

Matthew 19:12
Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”

Posted by CMA on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 4:53 PM (EST):

Praise God for such balanced and pastoral thinking. If the Church’s mission is first and foremost to bring everyone to Christ thereby to save souls, then it would follow that to stand as Pharisees on this issue thereby denying people the Church, the one thing that makes Catholicism what it is, the Eucharist and sacramental Communion with Christ, then we deliberately renounce our commission.

The Church is a hospital for sinners, we do not do the judging. The Church has the right to bind and loose…we have tended to remember that we can bind forgetting that she can loose as well. Do we really think that Jesus thought our hearts would not be hard again? Or that hearing that one commits adultery in their heart when they look at someone of the opposite sex with lusht, that it would not happen? Do we deny that person communion with us and with Christ? Would Christ do that? Absolutely not. Do we simply say, like the Orthodox, we accept, like Moses, that human hearts are hardened and therefore we will allow (seemingly arbitrarily) three divorces before we say…no more? I think not. I think that Cardinal Kasper is correct, each is an individual case and the pastor, I would say, in union with the bishop, should be able to discern those that need a pastoral rather than a canon law treatment.

None of us should throw the first stone, including the Church. And given that the Church has failed miserably in passing on the faith certainly in the past 60 years, we owe our people mercy. Not cheap mercy, but mercy.

It is very telling to me that the early Church had a way back in. Divorce was clearly seen as a sin, perhaps even mortal, but not one untouchable by God’s mercy. We forgive murder but not divorce. There is something very wrong in that. Perhaps the Church needs more post marriage encounters/training and perhaps that would be required of people prior to acceptance back into the sacraments but there should be a way back in for everyone WHO IS REPENTANT.

I do hope the Consistory looks closely at what Cardinal Kasper is saying and they simply do not toss it away, out of hand. He is making a Christ like case.

Posted by Martin W. Howser on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 4:36 PM (EST):

“I am not going to question Cardinal Casper’s motives on the issue of devoiced and civilly remarried Catholics whose first marriage may be valid. It seems to me his logic falls short for allowing them re-admittance into full communion into the Church given that they may be living in unrepentant sin in their current union.

Yes the Church must minister to all sinners asking them to repent of their sin but repentance in the case of a valid marriage and a new civil marriage while the former spouse remains alive, means either going back to their original spouse if they can or living a chaste life (no sex) with their new wife as defined under civil law. This may remove the element of sin in this union.

I think that the Cardinal and for that matter the Church would be better served in looking more critically at the impediments including psychological ones to a valid marriage, most importantly to improving marriage preparation for those who wish to be married in the Church and supporting existing marriages within the Church.

Using the so called interior forum where the individual would determine via their personal conscience could allow them to rationalize the invalidity of their previous marriage which may be still valid in the eyes of God and the Church. This could be a very slippery slope for the diminution of marriage as Christ defined it.”

Posted by Theresa H on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 4:10 PM (EST):

Isn’t the question: What does Jesus say, what does the Church teach (based on the teaching of Jesus) in the New Testament about divorce, and re-marriage? (The Church can’t say/do different than what Jesus said.) “Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, and said: “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one? So they are no longer two but one. What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder.”....He said to them: “For your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a divorced woman, commits adultery.” (Matt. 19:3-9) St. Paul writes: “To the married I give charge, not I but the Lord, that the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does, let her remain single or else be reconciled with her husband) and that the husband should not divorce his wife. A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. If the husband dies, she is free to be remarried to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.” (1Cor 7:11-13) There are other places: Matt 5:31-32; Mark 10:2-4,11-12; Lk 16:18. If there was no sacramental marriage (marriage before the Church), there may be question re. the validity of the marriage….This is beyond the Q&A here.

Posted by DJ Hesselius on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 3:51 PM (EST):

@ Jeannemoc: um, no, the men at the Vatican, with whom I am assuming you are furious, are not the ones who made the rules. Jesus did—of course he wasn’t married either. If you are going to be angry, at least be angry with the right person.

Posted by SCF on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 3:03 PM (EST):

I find the Cardinal’s beliefs very disturbing that question if there might be a way around the very clear statement of our Lord that man should not dissolve what has been joined in heaven. If the Church finds a reason to dissolve a Catholic marriage, there is another commitment between the married Catholic parties and God that will continue to exist. This the Church can not dissolve.I don’t see how Holy Communion can be given to two Catholics who are living in a state of mortal sin.
The argument that their marriage failed because they did not understand their pre marriage instructions given to them is not reasonable. The rules for committing to a contract are clear and the concept that a true decision is not possible to make is false. Matters such as this are black and white. If there is no truth there is no reason for the Church to exist.
As I read the bible divorced and remarried Catholics should not receive Holy Communion. This would be a sacrilege. This is not just a Church tradition but it is a realistic interpretation of our Lord’s words in the Bible. German Bishops tried to sell this idea in the l980’s, but our Church leaders here wisely discarded the idea as not possible.
I hope that our leaders today take the same action.

Posted by Martin W. Howser on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 2:50 PM (EST):

I am not going to question Cardinal Casper’s motives on the issue of devoiced and civilly remarried Catholics whose first marriage may be valid. It seems to me his logic falls short for allowing them re-admittance into full communion into the Church given that they may be living in unrepentant sin in their current union.

Yes the Church must minister to all sinners asking them to repent of their sin but repentance in the case of a valid marriage and a new civil marriage while the former spouse remains alive, means either going back to their original spouse if they can or living a chaste life (no sex) with their new wife as defined under civil law. This may remove the element of sin in this union.

I think that the Cardinal and for that matter the Church would be better served in looking more critically at the impediments including psychological ones to a valid marriage, most importantly to improving marriage preparation for those who wish to be married in the Church and supporting existing marriages within the Church.

Using the so called interior forum where the individual would determine via their personal conscience could allow them to rationalize the invalidity of their previous marriage which may be still valid in the eyes of God and the Church. This could be a very slippery slope for the diminution of marriage as Christ defined it.

Posted by jeannemoc on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 1:41 PM (EST):

Makes me furious to hear implied that I need to go to confession because I’m divorced. Make me more furious to read how men who have never experienced divorce are making rules for those who do!

Posted by St Donatus on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 1:07 PM (EST):

I see this will be abused by the clergy and faithful. The only reason I can think of that a divorced person would have any mercy is if they were abandoned by their spouse. I am sorry, I am a divorced person, thankfully not married in the Church but I can understand the pain of these folks but the fact is that usually they do have a choice. I have many reasons to divorce my wife, all of them selfish. I will not divorce her for my selfish reasons because it is against God’s will and his wisdom for us. I almost came to the point of divorcing her before coming back to the Church. Once I recognized that it was the influence of our selfish society that was ruining our marriage, I abandoned modern television shows and the worldly internet. (Yes, it was ultimately my own fault.) I now recognize how Satan influences us through these ultimately evil forms of entertainment.

As Jesus said, we must be not part of the world and we must first love our God, then others. He also says at John 12:25 ‘Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.’

How is it that our modern Church must try to overrule God in order to make accommodations for our selfishness. My marriage improved dramatically once I realized that I was being selfish, I was listening to the world and the devil whisper in my ear, she isn’t fair, I am not being fulfilled, I am depressed in this marriage, I just want to run away, why is she so mean, etc.

This will just give Catholics one more excuse to draw farther away from God.

Think about it, why could our parents or grand parents never even think of divorce. Were they somehow different that we are today? Well, yes. They put God higher in their lives, they knew that self sacrifice was a part of being a Catholic, just like fasting EVER FRIDAY of the year and all through Lent. Now most don’t even bother to fast on the few days our Bishops think us whimpy US Catholic can handle, Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.

Lets suck it up folks and get to be strong Catholics who love God in a real way.

Posted by solly on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 11:36 AM (EST):

When surveys show that so many Catholics are not abiding by the teaching of the Church on moral issues like abortion, contraception, marriage, co-habitation, extra-marital and disordered sexual activity etc, is it really to be expected that things will be any different for re-marrieds, or that they will abide by any penitential process that others are not expected or even asked to abide by?

Posted by Kay on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 11:24 AM (EST):

What a mess. I believe this mess was created by the clergy. Now, they want to fix it by muddying the waters even more. There are natural consequences to our actions. Why does this not apply here? It is very clear what the church says about divorce and re-marriage. If you choose freely to do otherwise, there is a consequence. Sometimes our lot is to never marry again. Easy to say, but hard to live, just like every cross we bear.

Posted by J.A.C. on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 10:36 AM (EST):

I need questions answered and I keep noticing that my comments are never here….I give up…

Posted by Dr. Adam Rasmussen on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 10:19 AM (EST):

Now that Francis has tipped his hand via Cardinal Kasper, the question is how many bishops will agree. Will it be like Vatican II, when the reformist bishops were surprised to discover they had a strong majority? Or will most say No to the bishop of Rome? I suspect that many bishops will now be seriously considering the issue for the first time in their careers. Even the majority do oppose change, I suspect Francis will not stop them, given his emphasis on collegial governance.

Posted by J.A.C. on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 10:19 AM (EST):

I have noticed that too many Catholics who have survived a possible divorce are acting high and mighty and almost showing off that fact and then condemning those who have divorced and remarried…this to me is cruelty to those of us who are divorced and remarried…Jesus said that everybody is invited to His table…EVERYBODY…and that includes those who are in a state of sin….I was only married for 8 months and too young to even be married as we really were not ready for it….is that my fault?...NO…I am not the one who wanted the divorce….I am also not the one who got married soon after the divorce…my first marriage was way back in 1996…I was determined not to marry again because I lost all trust in men….but in 2010 I finally met somebody and then in 2012 I remarried…now I look at those who commit abortions and those who support it and I look at how they are allowed to receive Holy Communion and I look at those of us who have divorced and remarried and love Jesus with all our heart and are not even allowed to receive Him in this sacrament….something needs to happen here as some of us feel that going to church doesn’t even matter and committing suicide would be better than going on living…is this what you stupid so called good Catholics want??....we need prayers…not death sentences…

Posted by charles on Tuesday, Mar, 4, 2014 10:17 AM (EST):

13% of adult catholics in the USA are divorced or separated and probably most of them do not attend Sunday mass at all or infrequently. The far bigger issue is that 25% of adult catholics in the USA have never been married. That is an unacceptable number. For whatever reason, and the reasons are many, too many catholics are choosing to remain single which does not bode well for the future of the church. These people are willing to commit their time and energy to many different things but cannot bring themselves to commit to another person in many cases. Is it just bad luck or are they too demanding or too selfish or too worried about their parents or too worried about losing their independence? Maybe most or all of the above mixed together but in any case the church needs to address this issue.

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